Tafseer of The Cave · Al-Kahf · 18:43
And there was for him no company to aid him other than Allah, nor could he defend himself.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of the word of Allah, the Exalted: وَلَمْ تَكُنْ لَهُ فِئَةٌ يَنْصُرُونَهُ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ وَمَا كَانَ مُنْتَصِرًا (And he had no group that could help him besides Allah, and he was not able to defend himself [18:43])
Allah, the Exalted, says: the owner of the two gardens had no fiʾa — that is, a group — as al-ʿAjjāj said:
"As the brave warrior drives the group."
In the same sense as we have stated, the scholars of exegesis also spoke, even though some of them differed in their manner of expression — the meaning is the same as ours.
* Mention of who said this:
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us — and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — both on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning the word of Allah, the Almighty and Exalted: وَلَمْ تَكُنْ لَهُ فِئَةٌ يَنْصُرُونَهُ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ — he said: his tribe.
Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid — the same.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning وَلَمْ تَكُنْ لَهُ فِئَةٌ يَنْصُرُونَهُ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ: that is, an army that helps him. The word يَنْصُرُونَهُ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ (who help him besides Allah) — He says: who protect him from the punishment of Allah and the torment of Allah when He punishes and torments him.
The word وَمَا كَانَ مُنْتَصِرًا (And he was not able to defend himself) — He says: he was not able to resist the punishment of Allah when He punished him.
As Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning وَمَا كَانَ مُنْتَصِرًا: that is, one who could offer resistance.
